In 1905-1907, the St. Andrew's Bridge was built in Luzhniki according to the project of architects L. Proskuryakov and A. Pomerantsev.
It was built on the thirty-fifth kilometer of the ring road, planning as a railway crossing.
Initially, this bridge was named Sergievsky, in honor of Prince Sergey, the Governor of Moscow, who was killed, and in the early 20s of the last century it was renamed in honor of the St. Andrew's Church, located nearby.
The Andreevsky bridge lasted almost a century in its place, during which time it was repeatedly repaired and rebuilt, however, in the late 90s it ceased to meet safety requirements.
In the late 90s, the throughput of this bridge sharply decreased, and the speed of trains was also limited. In addition, the Andreevsky bridge interfered with the electrification of railway lines, which, in turn, hindered the process of reconstruction of the entire highway.
Moscow needed a different, new, bridge, and it was clear to everyone, but they decided to keep the old one as an example of architecture and a monument of engineering.
Its central arch weighing one and a half thousand tons was removed from the pillars and moved downstream to Gorky Park. The preparation of this process took eleven months. The passageway (Moscow River) was blocked for ships for 8 days, although towing itself took only two hours.
In the old place, it was decided to build two new ones: a road bridge and a railway. The builders had to lengthen the Andreevsky bridge: the Moscow River in this meta exceeded the width of the bridge span by 90 meters in width. Therefore, two reinforced concrete arch spans were added.
From the side of the Neskuchny Garden, a two-hundred-meter flyover was built, stretching from Lenin Avenue right up to Pushkinskaya Embankment, and on the other hand, from Frunzenskaya, a covered entrance hall was built, turning into an escalator gallery.
The monument of engineering and architecture, St. Andrew's Bridge, although partially, was preserved. And now at this renewed crossing you can see the centuries-old openwork arch, stretching for 140 meters, stone pillars with "bumps" and coastal spans.
The pre-revolutionary and new parts of this building are painted in different colors and contrast favorably.
The Andreevsky bridge from a distance resembles something like a large steamboat, on which you can walk both on the open deck and under a glass canopy. One thing is sad on this ship - there is not a single bench along its entire length, so you have to stand while admiring the surrounding panorama of Moscow.
There is something to look at from the Andreevsky bridge: a magnificent view of the Cathedral of Christ, practically all the towers of the Kremlin, many high-rise buildings opens up , a look upstream immediately stops at the Andreevsky monastery, Moscow State University and the new building of the RAS.
In the alignment of this unique bridge, the Shukhov Tower is visible.
Today, the St. Andrew's bridge, its pedestrian part, has become a favorite meeting place for Moscow creative youth. A huge number of tourists come here, especially in the evenings. Those who saw the bridge in the light of night lights unanimously say that it looks unforgettable.